Handling Environment Variables in Node.js without Dotenv is Now Possible!

Introduction:
Environment variables are essential for specifying configuration settings in Node.js applications. Traditionally, developers have used packages like dotenv to manage and load environment variables into their applications. However, with the recent advancements in Node.js, you no longer need to rely on external packages like dotenv to handle environment variables effectively. In this tutorial, we will discuss how you can manage and use environment variables in Node.js without using dotenv.

Step 1: Using the process.env object
One of the simplest ways to access environment variables in Node.js is by using the process.env object. This object provides access to the environment variables set in your system. You can access an environment variable by specifying its name as a key in the process.env object. For example, to access the PORT environment variable, you can use process.env.PORT.

Step 2: Setting environment variables
To set environment variables in your Node.js application, you can do so directly in your system’s terminal before running your application. For example, if you want to set the PORT environment variable to 3000, you can do so using the following command:

PORT=3000 node app.js

This command sets the PORT environment variable to 3000 before running your Node.js application. You can set multiple environment variables in this way by separating them with spaces.

Step 3: Using a .env file
Although you don’t need dotenv to load environment variables from a .env file, you can still use one to manage your environment variables more conveniently. Instead of relying on dotenv, you can load the contents of a .env file into the process.env object using the fs module. Here’s an example of how you can do this:

const fs = require(‘fs’);

const dotenv = fs.readFileSync(‘.env’);
const envConfig = dotenv.split(‘n’);
envConfig.forEach((line) => {
const [key, value] = line.split(‘=’);
process.env[key] = value;
});

By using this code, you can load the contents of a .env file into the process.env object without relying on the dotenv package. This allows you to manage your environment variables more effectively without the need for external dependencies.

Step 4: Handling default values
In some cases, you may want to provide default values for your environment variables if they are not set. You can easily achieve this in Node.js by using the logical OR operator (||) to provide a default value if the environment variable is undefined. Here’s an example:

const PORT = process.env.PORT || 3000;

This code sets the PORT environment variable to 3000 if it is not already set. This can be useful for ensuring that your application behaves correctly even if certain environment variables are not configured.

Conclusion:
In conclusion, you don’t need to rely on external packages like dotenv to manage environment variables in Node.js anymore. By using the process.env object, setting environment variables in your system’s terminal, loading a .env file manually, and handling default values effectively, you can manage and use environment variables in your Node.js applications without the need for additional dependencies. This approach can help simplify your application’s configuration management and reduce dependencies, leading to more maintainable and efficient code.